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My Secret Shorts!

Hello everyone, I hope you’re having an amazing summer (or winter!) so far… I have a confession to make. I’ve been keeping a secret for MONTHS. But finally the cat is out of the bag – I was contacted to be a Pattern Tester for Megan Nielsen’s new Harper pattern!!!

My goodness…. I’ve been like Surprise Sue trying to keep this a secret for the past few months…

SNL anyone???

This is pretty much like a dream come true for me. I adore Megan’s style, her sense of humour (especially as it relates to mommyhood), and I just love her patterns. Seriously – I lived in the MN nursing tops and nighties during my pregnancies and during the months years of breastfeeding my babies.

Stylish and comfortable shorts or pleated skort. Pattern sits just below the natural waistline, features a modern fit, two lengths and a full lining.

Version 1 is a pair of shorts with curved patch pockets. Version 2 is a mid length pleated skort with slash pockets which combines the comfort of shorts with the appearance of a skirt.

I made Version 1 Shorts, simply because I didn’t have enough fabric in my stash to make Version 2 Skort. By the time I received the email from MN Headquarters asking if I’d like to test the new pattern, I had already packed up almost 95% of my sewing room…. FYI – we recently moved back to the Interior…. I’ll post about that gong show adventure later…

I made the shorts up in a linen-cotton blend from my stash and lined them with an old white cotton bed-sheet. Based on my measurements, I made a size Medium. I didn’t make any adjustments (obviously, as I was testing the pattern!). The only extra addition I made to the shorts was to add pockets to the back. This was just personal preference; I feel like my butt looks weird without pockets!

The pattern calls for an invisible zipper, but again most of my stash was packed away in moving boxes, so I had to do a lapped zipper instead.

I found that the Medium fit me perfectly, but I ran into a bit of trouble attaching the waistband to the shorts lining. The pieces didn’t line up, but Meg has sorted that out now so the pattern should be good to go!

We’re sort of in limbo at the moment, waiting to move into our new house that we bought (!!!). But once we get settled and I get my new sewing room set up, I’m planning a Version 2 Skort in a black faux leather. Won’t that be awesome with a pair of thick tights for fall and winter?!?!? Squeeeeeee!!!

I’m so happy that I can finally wear my Harper shorts out and about with confidence. I’ve worn them several times as the weather has FINALLY started getting warm. People say “Hey those are cute shorts. Did you make them? What pattern did you use?”.

And I respond like:

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

Thanks again @megannielsenpatterns for asking me to test Harper! I’m so happy I got the opportunity to experience a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into releasing a pattern. So awesome!!!

ps: Sorry for the poor quality photos, I had to take them with my cell phone (the camera battery was already packed). And these old pics make me a bit homesick for our old house, and my long hair!